Explore

Epic Expands AI Capabilities with New Agent Platform and Cosmos-Powered Predictive Tools for Healthcare

Epic Expands AI Capabilities with New Agent Platform and Cosmos-Powered Predictive Tools for Healthcare

Epic, a leading electronic health record (EHR) vendor, has unveiled a new suite of AI tools and capabilities at its annual Users Group Meeting in Verona, Wisconsin. The company aims to embed AI and automation deeply into clinical, operational, and administrative workflows within healthcare organizations. Key announcements include the expansion of its AI agent platform, Agent Factory, which allows healthcare organizations to build, run, and monitor AI agents without coding. Epic also introduced Curiosity, a generative AI model powered by its Cosmos clinical research database, designed to forecast patient outcomes such such as hospital readmission and stroke risk. Curiosity leverages real-world patient data from over 320 million patients and 23 billion medical encounters. Additionally, Epic highlighted advancements in its existing AI tools like Art (clinical AI copilot), Emmie (patient-facing AI assistant), and Penny (revenue cycle copilot), emphasizing their integration into a single enterprise AI system.

Generative AI Poised to Revolutionize Cancer Drug Trials, Addressing Recruitment Failures and Costly Development

Generative AI Poised to Revolutionize Cancer Drug Trials, Addressing Recruitment Failures and Costly Development

The development of new cancer drugs is an arduous and expensive process, often exceeding a billion US dollars and taking nearly a decade, with a high rate of failure. A primary reason for these failures is recruitment issues in clinical trials, a problem exacerbated by the increasing fragmentation of cancer entities into molecularly-defined subgroups in the era of precision oncology. This leads to multiple trials competing for a shrinking pool of eligible patients. Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as a potential solution by creating synthetic data that is indistinguishable from real data. This AI can generate medical images, text from electronic health records, and tabular data, including laboratory parameters, genetics, and outcomes. Unlike digital twins, which are digital replicas of individual patients, synthetic data statistically mimics feature distributions to create new samples without being exact copies of original training data. This technology aims to address the challenges of ...

Full-Body MRI Scans Gain Popularity for Preventive Health, Raising Questions About Efficacy and Risks

Full-Body MRI Scans Gain Popularity for Preventive Health, Raising Questions About Efficacy and Risks

Full-body MRI scans are increasingly being adopted by consumers seeking to proactively manage their health, with individuals paying between $1,000 and $2,500 out-of-pocket for these diagnostic tests. This trend is driven by a desire for personalized health tracking and the promise of early detection for various ailments, including tumors, inflammatory processes, and visceral fat. Advances in imaging quality, which allow MRIs to create clearer images of soft tissues compared to CT scans or X-rays, contribute to their appeal. Concierge medical providers are offering these scans annually or biennially, with proponents like Valeria Grijalva, an internal medicine specialist at The Mount Sinai Hospital, highlighting their potential to catch issues like tumors before they become metastatic. The limitations of conventional cancer screenings for certain deadly diseases, such as pancreatic or liver cancers, also contribute to the growing interest in full-body MRIs as a comprehensive screening tool.

Epic Systems Expands AI Capabilities with New Platform and Predictive Tools for Healthcare

Epic Systems Expands AI Capabilities with New Platform and Predictive Tools for Healthcare

Epic Systems, a leading electronic health record (EHR) provider, is significantly expanding its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, aiming to integrate AI and automation into various healthcare workflows. At its annual Users Group Meeting in Verona, Wisconsin, Epic unveiled a new suite of AI tools, including 'Ergo,' an AI system designed to combine human judgment with AI's data analysis strengths. The company is embedding generative AI and automation directly into its EHR system through copilot tools like 'Art' for clinicians, 'Emmie' for patients, and 'Penny' for revenue cycle management. These tools are intended to function as an enterprise AI system for healthcare. For instance, 'Art' can summarize patient records before visits, and 'Emmie' can interact with patients via MyChart. Epic is also leveraging its clinical research database, Cosmos, to develop 'Curiosity,' a generative AI model that uses real-world patient data from over 310 million patients and 21 billion medical encounters to forecast...

FDA Authorizes Aletta, First Robotic Blood Draw Device for Outpatient Use

FDA Authorizes Aletta, First Robotic Blood Draw Device for Outpatient Use

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted marketing authorization for the Aletta, a groundbreaking standalone robotic device capable of drawing blood from a patient's arm without direct human intervention. This authorization, issued through the De Novo pathway for low- to moderate-risk devices, marks the first time such a device has been approved. The Aletta is authorized for use in adults within outpatient settings and requires oversight from a phlebotomy-trained supervisor, with one supervisor able to manage up to three devices simultaneously. The device autonomously handles the entire blood draw process, from guiding arm positioning and locating a suitable vein using near-infrared light and Doppler ultrasound, to applying a tourniquet, preparing the skin, inserting and disposing of the needle, changing collection tubes, and applying a bandage. Safety features include automatic needle detachment if the patient moves excessively and continuous disinfectant application during the ultrasound s...

Neko Health Scan to Open First U.S. Clinic in New York City, Offering Affordable Health Monitoring

Neko Health Scan to Open First U.S. Clinic in New York City, Offering Affordable Health Monitoring

Neko Health Scan, a Swedish company co-founded by Spotify executive chairman Daniel Ek and Hjalmar Nilsonne, is set to open its first U.S. facility in New York City this September. The 11,000-square-foot clinic at 300 Lafayette St. will introduce Neko's proprietary health-monitoring technology to the American market. This technology provides an affordable ($499), non-invasive, and radiation-free scan that captures data on cardiovascular, metabolic, and other bodily functions within 60 minutes, followed by a physician's review. The company has already amassed a waitlist of over 25,000 New Yorkers, indicating significant demand for its services. Neko Health aims to make advanced preventive healthcare accessible to a broader population, moving away from the perception that such services are exclusively for the wealthy. The Soho clinic will be one of Neko’s largest and most advanced facilities, building on its existing presence in Sweden and the UK.

Whoop Expands Advanced Labs to Non-Members, Adds Multi-Cancer Detection Test

Whoop Expands Advanced Labs to Non-Members, Adds Multi-Cancer Detection Test

Fitness wearable company Whoop has announced the expansion of its Advanced Labs testing services to individuals who are not members of its platform. This move signifies Whoop's continued evolution from a fitness tracker company to a clinical health platform. Advanced Labs combines blood testing, powered by Quest, with clinician-reviewed results, AI-driven insights, and personalized recommendations focusing on cardiovascular, metabolic, and inflammatory health. The company reports that eight out of ten users discover a "meaningful health finding" through Advanced Labs, with over half receiving results that may warrant follow-up with a healthcare provider. In addition to expanding access, Whoop is integrating Grail’s multi-cancer early detection test into its lineup, which will also be available to non-members. This test can be accessed at nearly 2,000 Quest locations across the U.S., with results delivered directly to the Whoop app. This expansion follows Whoop's recent partnerships, including one with Heal...

Food Recall Alerts Often Missed by Public, Raising Concerns About Communication and Access

Food Recall Alerts Often Missed by Public, Raising Concerns About Communication and Access

A recent analysis of over 100 food recall stories reveals that a significant portion of the American public remains unaware of critical food recall alerts. Despite the seriousness of some recalls, including those classified as Class I by the FDA, only about 3% of Americans subscribe to official notifications. The reporting highlights several issues contributing to this lack of awareness: official notices are often published only in English, even for products sold in multilingual communities; many recalls are regional, leading consumers to believe they are unaffected; and the language used in store signage can be vague, downplaying potential risks. Furthermore, the analysis notes that while contamination by bacteria like Listeria or Salmonella receives attention, many recalls are due to foreign objects such as metal or plastic fragments in packaged foods. Misinformation and rumors about recalls also spread rapidly on social media, often overshadowing accurate information.

AI Personalization in Nutrition Care Shows Promise for Dietary Assessment and Glucose Guidance, Not Overall Diet

AI Personalization in Nutrition Care Shows Promise for Dietary Assessment and Glucose Guidance, Not Overall Diet

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are demonstrating potential in personalizing specific aspects of nutrition care, particularly dietary assessment and postprandial glucose guidance. Research indicates that machine intelligence can effectively personalize selected components of nutrition care, such as dietary assessment and guidance for blood glucose levels after meals. However, the evidence does not yet reliably support AI's ability to determine the best overall diet for every individual or clinical objective. A European trial, Food4Me, found that participants receiving personalized dietary advice showed greater improvements in dietary behaviors, including reduced red meat, salt, and saturated fat intake, and higher healthy-eating scores, compared to those receiving conventional advice. Interestingly, the study also revealed that incorporating phenotype and genotype information did not further enhance these results; personalization based solely on diet and lifestyle proved equally effe...

FDA Selects Cadence's HypertensionOS for TEMPO Pilot Program to Evaluate Digital Health Technology

FDA Selects Cadence's HypertensionOS for TEMPO Pilot Program to Evaluate Digital Health Technology

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has chosen Cadence's HypertensionOS as the second participant in its Technology-Enabled Meaningful Patient Outcomes (TEMPO) pilot program. HypertensionOS is a software as a medical device (SaMD) designed to assist clinicians in managing medication for patients diagnosed with stage 2 hypertension. This selection is part of a broader FDA initiative, in collaboration with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center’s Advancing Chronic Care with Effective, Scalable Solutions (ACCESS) Model. The TEMPO pilot aims to facilitate access to specific digital health technologies while ensuring patient safety and gathering real-world evidence on their clinical application. HypertensionOS incorporates AI-assisted features to support licensed healthcare professionals, such as physicians and Advanced Practice Registered Nurses, in medication initiation and titration workflows within predefined eligibility conditions and deterministic safety checks for ou...

Abridge Expands AI Clinical Decision Support to All Clinicians Across 300+ Health Systems

Abridge Expands AI Clinical Decision Support to All Clinicians Across 300+ Health Systems

Abridge, an artificial intelligence company, is expanding its AI-based clinical decision support (CDS) solution to all clinicians within its network of over 300 partner health systems. This move is part of Abridge's broader strategy to evolve from AI documentation tools to an enterprise AI assistant for healthcare professionals. The CDS solution, which integrates with existing electronic health record (EHR) systems, provides context-aware, evidence-based answers at the point of care. According to Shiv Rao, M.D., CEO and co-founder of Abridge, adoption of this decision support has significantly outpaced previous offerings, with monthly active users growing to over half of eligible Abridge clinicians and queries per clinician tripling in the last two months. The technology supports over 100 million clinical conversations annually and has content integrations with major medical literature sources like The New England Journal of Medicine and Wolters Kluwer's UpToDate.

Medtech Industry Faces Memory Chip Shortages, Threatening Innovation and Patient Care

Medtech Industry Faces Memory Chip Shortages, Threatening Innovation and Patient Care

Medtech Industry Faces Memory Chip Shortages, Threatening Innovation and Patient Care